Austria pledges €7M to Ukraine for demining and grain delivery

Ukraine's Ambassador to Austria Vasyl Khymynets reported.

"Welcome to Kyiv, dear Federal Minister," he wrote.

Upon arriving in Kyiv, Austria's Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger, together with Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, laid flowers at the Wall of Remembrance for fallen Ukrainian soldiers, Die Presse reports.  

"For Meinl-Reisinger, the trip to Kyiv is her 'first real foreign visit' in her new position. In her luggage, the foreign minister carried a check for 5 million euros to assist in demining agricultural lands and 2 million euros for delivering Ukrainian grain to Middle Eastern countries in need," the publication noted.  

Additionally, the minister plans to meet with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

On March 3, Austria's new government under Chancellor Christian Stocker was sworn in.  

Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger stated that she supports not only using interest from frozen Russian assets for Ukraine’s reconstruction but also the possibility of utilizing the assets themselves, PULS 24 reports. She emphasized that while the European Commission's initiative is the right move, a clear legal framework is needed for its implementation.

• A special screening of the film After the Rain: Putin's Kidnapped Children Return Home by Australian-British director Sarah McCarthy took place in Vienna.